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A barking dog is often not looked at the same way as a quiet dog. This goes for the dog’s owner and their neighbours. Many dogs are given up by their owners each year due to barking. This does not need to be the case. Excessive barking is a problem that can be fixed if you are consistent and diligent with your dog training. In this article I am going to discuss why dogs bark and give you a few tips on how to stop your dog from barking too much, by teaching it when it’s ok to bark.

Dogs Bark Naturally – Why?

There are many reasons why a dog will bark. Here are a few… dogs will bark out of boredom, they will bark as a warning, because of loneliness, from fear, for communication, to get attention, they may find it is fun, etc. Some dog breeds tend to bark more than others…these can be the herding breeds. For example, a Shetland sheepdog is a breed prone to barking. They use barking as one of the tools in their instinctive job of herding. Shelties can be very vocal dogs as well.

How To Control a Dog’s Barking

The best way to control a dog’s barking is to NOT allow the barking to become a habit. As soon as your puppy or dog becomes a member of your household, you need to start teaching what behaviours are good and bad, acceptable and not acceptable. Use a command such as’ No Bark’ or ‘Stop’ when your dog barks. As soon as it stops or quiets down, praise your dog. To give the commands use a firm voice but avoid yelling. Yelling can sound to a dog like barking and make the situation worse your dog will think it is supposed to bark as well! Show your dog that you really like when it is quiet and not barking. Just shouting NO can sound like a bark and get your dog even more exited and barky!

Praise Your Dog for Not Barking

Dogs train best by using positive reinforcement. Let your dog know when you are happy with the way it is behaving. As soon as your dog stops barking, you need to reinforce the stopping of barking with a treat and praise. No puppy is born knowing commands. You have to teach your dog that each command has an action and if that action is done, good things will follow. Positive reinforcement is the best training technique! Be careful not to praise unwanted behaviours you do not want by mistake. Patting and stroking a barking dog can give the dog the impression you like what it is doing and it will continue.

You May Want Your Dog to Warn That People Are At the Door

To achieve this without your dog think that it can bark all of the time, set up training scenarios. Have someone ring the door bell or knock at the door. Call your dog to come to you and have it follow you to the door. Ask excitedly “Who’s there?” “Check it out!” or whatever verbal cue you decide to use. Get your dog to bark. Go to the door, have your dog sit and then get it to stop barking. Praise and treat your dog when it stops barking. Teach it that when you get to the door and check out the situation, the barking should stop and it should be quiet. You must be consistent and positive. Practice this situation in several short sessions per day and your dog will eventually learn what you want.

My Dog Barks A Lot Already

Sometimes you may get a dog that is already mature so you don’t have the advantage of training it as a puppy when it is easiest to create good habits and eliminate bad ones. If you are in this situation, you can try several things. First, determine why your dog is barking: Is it lonely, trying to alert you to something, is it experiencing fear, boredom, aggression, etc. Knowing the reason or reasons for the barking is a big part of finding a solution.

If your dog is alerting you to something, teach it that once you have checked out the situation and you have indicated that everything is ok; your dog must stop barking. My dogs have learned that I want them to alert me to things on the property or that could pose a threat. As soon as I have checked it out and indicated everything is ok, my dog does not need to alert me anymore.

A Bored or Lonely Dog Needs to Be Active

Toys, games, training, interaction all go a long way to help a bored or lonely dog. A tired dog is generally a better behaved dog. They are usually in a better state of mind when they are active. Boredom and loneliness can lead to other undesired behaviors as well. Get a variety of toys like Kongs, safe chew toys, Nylabones, etc., that will stimulate your dog’s mind and give it something to do. Obedience lessons, a walk or playing fetch will help.

Nuisance behaviours, such as barking, will quite often appear in dogs that are outside all day and alone. The biggest reason is that no one is home to teach the proper behavior. If no one shows your dog what it can and cannot do, the issue will persist.

Play Barking

If your dog barks during play, quiet the type of play down. Get your dog into a relaxed mood and then and start the play activity again. Always keep play under control…be the leader in the activity and include training tasks in the play.

Some dogs are pathological barkers and may not be helped to stop their bad habits without using the help of a behaviourist. Sometimes just having a trainer watch your dog can help give you ideas on how to teach your dog not to bark. Sometimes a ‘fresh’ pair of eyes can see things that you can’t because you are constantly working with your dog and you may not see the issues clearly.

Training Collars

Many people want a fast and easy way to solve the bad barking behaviors that their dog is doing and may resort to various types of collars that can help to stop barking. If any training aid is used incorrectly, it can frustrate the dog and possibly make a bad situation worse. ‘No bark’ collars deter the barking through a shock, noise, or spray with a scent dogs do not like. Some dogs will learn to ignore the corrective action of these collars. Others may develop nervous behaviors due to the constant punishment.

The Best Way To Stop Barking Is To Not Let It Develop In The First Place.

Here a few things you can do:

1) Use positive training methods to encourage the dog to stay quiet when told

2) Teach a command that lets the dog know you want him to be quiet like ‘No Bark’ or ‘Enough’.

3) Keep your dog inside when you are not home. Dogs left outside alone all day are more likely to become nuisance barkers.

4) Obedience training for you and your dog.

5) Lots of exercise, proper attention to your dog, mental and physical stimulation. A dog that gets what it requires mentally and physically is less likely to become a problem barker.

6) Teach your dog when it is ok to bark.

7) Do not let your dog get away with barking for hours before you decide to tell it to stop. The dog may be getting set to stop anyhow and he is getting attention from you, increasing the chance of barking if it is doing it for attention. Always stop the bark as soon as it first starts.

Do not inadvertently teach the dog that constant barking is good by petting or talking positively while it is barking.

9) Teach your dog from day one what will and will not be allowed. Remember, some breeds are more prone to barking than others, but any dog can be an excessive barker.

10) Try to find the cause of the barking – like neighborhood kids teasing the dog.

Dogs allowed to become nuisance barkers may disturb your whole neighbourhood, which could end up being a bad situation for everyone. You can end up being fined by your community for violating noise ordinances or even having an irate neighbor take the law into his own hands! Do not allow your dog to become a nuisance.

About this Author

We have over 30 years of dog experience. To see the information and resources we have available for dog owners and to view the 2000+ products we carry for dogs and their dog owners, visit: Dog-e-Direct [http://dog-e-direct.com]

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The following are suggestions to the client involved in a contested divorce case, motion to modify or paternity case in which custody or temporary custody is or may be at issue. Also, remember that there may be a request for change of custody or temporary custody in the future and therefore, the following suggestions should always be taken into consideration.

These suggestions are made for the present and future benefit of your children and your goal as a parent should always be to improve the children’s lives and to better provide for their needs.

Remember: Everything you do or do not do as a parent affects your children and their future.

1. Exercise your custody rights to the maximum, but always remain flexible to accommodate special circumstances relating to either the children or the other parent. Try to determine the real needs of your children and really listen to what they have to say, and equally importantly, what they are not saying. Do not attempt to become a private investigator and do not speak disparagingly of or belittle the other parent or stepparent, or any other significant person in your children’s lives. Enjoy the time you spend with the children and allow them to enjoy you and the time that they spend with you.

2. Regularly keep a journal or diary of events in order to remember and be able to point out dates, witnesses, facts, etc., pertaining to significant events and problems regarding the children. Maintain this diary in a secure place where it is not accessible to the children. Do not let the children know that you are keeping this diary.

3. Learn how to be a better parent. Begin by selecting, from the bookstore or library one or two books on child care, child raising, and parenthood that are written for parents of children of your children’s ages or any special needs they may have (for example, being children of divorce or having an absent parent suddenly reappear). If you are considering joint custody or if the other party is requesting joint custody, read some of the available books on the subject. Knowledge is power and it will help you make the best decisions for your children and yourself.

4. Be involved in all of your children’s activities, including school, sports, scouts, counseling, medical and dental care. Get to know those people who teach your children, run their extracurricular activities and care for them. Generate and maintain a genuine interest in these areas. Maintain communication with the other parent about these issues. If you feel excluded, take action to remedy the problem. Go to the school, attempt to get information from the other parent and document those requests by sending letters or e-mails and keeping copies for your files. Do not quiz the children. If you can not get the information you seek, talk to your attorney about the options that you have.

5. Attend the church or temple activities of your choice. Become active in the affairs and social activities of your church or temple. Get to know and be known by those who actively participate. Take the children with you to these activities and otherwise involve them whenever possible.

6. Develop a plan showing how you would provide care, love and guidance and meet the other needs of your children should you be awarded custody. If you have custody and are involved in a Motion to Modify, be able to speak on how you do so now. Examples: where the children would live, their daily routine, who would care for them when they are not in school and when you are not physically present; educational and religious plans; what visitation and custody plans you would work out for the other parent (be liberal in your thinking and planning); what custodial arrangement you ultimately wish to obtain. Develop a workable, reasonable, and logical daily routine for the care of your children and be able to point out how your plan, care, and attention to the needs of the children is better than the existing one and how it will be better for the children in the future.

7. Make a list of relatives, close friends, and neighbors who have been or will actively assist you in providing for the needs of the children. Enlist these people and involve them with you and the children. Have your children get to know these people and establish a meaningful relationship between these individuals, the children and yourself.

8. Make sure the physical facilities of your home are totally adequate for the children. Try to step outside yourself and view the situation from a neutral vantage point. Look at it with a critical eye to be able to realize where improvements and changes are needed and make them. A clean and well-organized home is necessary. The children must have adequate shelter, food, and around-the-clock care, attention, love, supervision and discipline. You will need to show your home surroundings are or will be beneficial for the children. If you have a pre-school aged child, consider contacting the “Parents As Teachers” programs run by your local school. It is free to all, and they are an excellent source of information and guidance.

9. If you will require daycare for your children, investigate several alternatives that will suit your particular circumstances. You should be able to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each option, taking into account location, hours, level of care, reputation in the community, and, of course, cost. Be realistic about what you and the other parent can afford. The State of Missouri has a “Family Care Safety Registry” that may be accessed by calling toll-free 1-866-422-6872 or http://www.dhss.mo.gov/FCSR/. BJC offers a free booklet with tips on choosing a quality daycare that may be obtained by calling 314-454-KIDS or visiting http://www.bjc.org.

10. Develop common interests with your children and continue to be involved with those that already exist. Become a part of, share, and enjoy their world with them. Do not forget birthdays, Christmas, parent-child events at school or church and other special occasions that mean so much to children. Other than just gifts, you must give of yourself. Be an active parent, interested in their schoolwork, outside school activities, their sports, clubs, organizations, friends, and their plans for the future.

11. Make a study of the schools your children are or would be attending if living with you. Know and familiarize yourself with bus services or other transportation, hours of school, before and after school care, extra-curricular activities, etc., and have a good working knowledge of this important area of your child’s development. By law, each public school is required to produce a “school report card” with basic statistics about the school. Call the schools in your area and in the area where the other parent lives and get copies of these documents. Read them carefully and talk with school personnel if there is anything that you do not understand.

12. Obtain friends, relatives, neighbors, bosses, fellow employees, and church members who will be willing to testify in court as to your behavior patterns, reputation, responsibility, interaction and relationship with the children and general fitness as a parent. You will need to discuss this frankly with each of these people. Give us their names, addresses and telephone numbers and a brief statement as to what they are able and willing to testify to in the actual trial of your case. Advise us if you do not wish us to call them without first talking to you.

13. You need to honestly prepare a statement of constructive criticism of yourself and your spouse or former spouse, any stepparents or significant others in a stepparent role, as parents. Be fair and accurate, and put down facts and circumstances that can be proven or about which proof should be obtained. This statement tells why a change in custody is necessary or why you should retain custody. It should be detailed, and you should forward it to us as soon as possible. Remember that it is a sign that you are a good parent that you can admit that there are ways that you can improve as a parent.

14. Do not have members of the opposite sex to whom you are not related spending the night with you when the children are there. The court may consider this to be a negative factor when determining custody.

15. Have, maintain, and show an open healthy attitude toward visitation and custody of the other parent. The children need the love of both parents, and your own attitude in this respect is important to the children and will be given some weight by the court. The greatest gift that you can give your children as they grow up without both parents in the same home is the ability to love the other parent.

16. Your own emotional and physical health are important factors that will be considered by the court. It is important for you to be composed and in full control at all times and to be able to prove your maturity, responsibility, and self-management. Remember that actions speak louder than words and that there is no excuse for you to disagree disrespectfully with the other parent in front of the children or to discuss adult issues such as why you and the other parent are not together or the financial arrangements between the parents for the support of the children even f they ask or even if they have inaccurate information. Simply tell the children that both parents love them and that they will be taken care of and whatever issues they have are between the adults and that you will not discuss them. If this is a problem in your situation, talk to your attorney about your options.

17. It is important for you to be able to discuss in some detail your strengths and weaknesses as a parent and your spouse’s or former spouse’s strengths and weaknesses as a parent, as well as those of any step-parents or significant others. Remember, if your spouse did not have significant good points and strengths, you would not have had children with him or her. Similarly, you should be able to discuss your children’s strength and weaknesses in some detail. It is a positive attribute of a parent to be able to recognize both positive and negative in his or her children, him or herself and others.

Leigh Joy Carson, St. Louis Family Law Attorney

The law in most states require car insurance. Yes, right we all know that. So what do we do… we get the car insurance, of course so we can drive around and have some fun, etc. However, some of us are better at getting that great rate with an excellent car insurance company that others. What’s that you say? How so?

It’s not exactly fun for most of us, but getting the best rates with an excellent car insurance company that can and will perform for us is a bit of a chore. It takes a bit of time and effort. Some people will do exactly that while others can’t be bothered. That’s a mistake and it can cost you thousands of dollars year after year. Getting it right has it’s price!

We do have a choice of who we use for our car insurance, so lets not be sloppy or lazy about our choices. We all know it’s expensive to have car insurance, so why not get it right? If we shop around we can find the best car insurance company with the best rates to fit our needs.

Online has made this “job” of shopping around a ton easier than it is to pick up the phone and calling the top ten auto insurance providers and chatting with each one. Oh yeah, the internet is a hugh help when it comes to shopping around. You can get a free automobile insurance quote that offers comparison rates with other competitive companies. At times up to three or more comparison rates with one free online car insurance quote. This helps tremendously when it comes to saving time and helps in making some of these cost effective decisions easier.

Do not simply go with the lowest rate until you have investigated the car insurance company. You need to know they have a good track record with their policy holders. They should be willing to tell you about how long their company has been around, how many policy holders they have and how deep are their pockets financially speaking to be in a position to pay you on any claim you submit to them.

Keep in mind the car insurance companies are looking at YOU and “your driving record” when they offer those rates. Never forget the car insurance companies are studying statistics constantly in order to provide you with competitive rates AND keep their risks to a minimum.

Here are a few tips that you should be familiar with when shopping around for your best car insurance rates:

1. If your married you will always get the lower rates, especially if you are a male and young, if your driving records are good and there are not unusual circumstances involving your on road performance.

2. If your under 25 years of age you will pay more. Statistics have shown that young drivers do not perform as well on the road as persons over the age of 25. Young males again are a target for “high risk” performance.

3. Taking a driver’s safety course always provides a discount under normal circumstances with you driving record.

4. Keep your points down on your driving record. Speeding and other on-road hazards can lead to tickets and points on your driving record. When this happens your rates go up! This is a major factor in high rates quoted by the car insurance companies.

Note: If your parents have a nice plan, you may want to “seek cover” by joining them on their policy. Sometimes, it may even be necessary to have your vehicle in their name and then they can add you on their policy as one of the drivers of the family vehicles. This is all perfectly legal and may save you a small fortune if you’ve had some trouble with points, etc.

5. If you have a long commute or drive a ton, your rates will reflect that, since there is amply time for accidents to occur while your on the road. Can you reduce those miles by carpooling or ride-sharing? If so, you can reduce your rates. Let miles on the road equals lower rates.

6. Is your vehicle one that is so popular that it gets stolen or car-jacked more often than other makes and brands? This will always drive your automobile insurance rates up. Maybe it’s time to pick a “safer” auto.

7. Are you planning to buy a new car? Check out the cars that are considered “safe” and you can save if you can live with that list and buy one of those auto’s. The auto insurance companies spend a good deal of time looking into which cars are getting into trouble vs auto’s that aren’t. It’s a big factor with the car insurance companies and they do not like to take on that risk factor with sports and other “dangerous” cars.

8. Can you live with the idea of purchasing a nice “safe” used car? You will pay much less with a vehicle such as that… older. There are some wonderful deals and fabulously loaded with leather, premium sound systems ,etc. that are beautiful “used cars”. It can save you a ton just by owning the “older” “Mercedes Benz” type of car.

9. Consider carrying a high deductible. You will save a great deal on your insurance premiums with a high deductible on your car. Remember, you pay the premiums EVERY month, quarter or year. You may NEVER or rarely have an accident or theft of your auto. If you do not have a claim you will NEVER pay the deductible.

10. If you have more than one policy with your insurance company you will always get a discount. It’s this new and popular offer going on with all the insurance companies. They are looking for more business and if you are willing to give it to them, then bingo you will get discount. So, if you can manage to add your vehicle to your existing homeowners policy or vice versa, you can save.

Always read or have your agent explain to you the fine print and long laundry list of items in your policy to provide you with the coverage you truly need. Sometimes you may be doubling up on coverage you already have with another company, such as medical coverage and will not need to pay twice for the same protection. Know what you’ve just paid for and that you really need it.

It’s NICE to know we have done our “homework” and found “financial security” and “peace of mind” when we have laid our hard-earned money down for our car insurance AND have obtained the best rates with the full protection offered by an excellent car insurance company that will be there when we need them.

There are many more tips and advice on auto insurance companies to choose from and which have the ability to perform for you with great rates? Visit this popular website, Auto Insurance Companies Free Quote, http://www.auto-insurance-companies-free-quote.com

Get some fast facts on car insurance companies that can perform for you and offer excellent rates at this popular website Auto Insurance Companies Free Quote By Carley Swift.

Anyone who has seen the Lamborghini Reventón or the Aston Martin DBS knows that unmistakable feeling. It’s the thrill & the allure of the exotic sports car, overhauled & updated for the 21st century. Since their inception, sports cars have continually pushed the boundaries of both engineering & art. These are the cars that exemplify speed, power and beauty.

Alfa Romeo: The Grandfather of Exotic Sports Cars

Alfa Romeo first began producing racecars in Milan, Italy in 1910. Their first endeavor, the HP 24, turned some heads with its superior speed and handling. Chief Designer Giuseppe Merosi worked on all Alfa Romeo models from 1910 to 1923. When Merosi retired, racecar driver Enzo Ferrari persuaded Vittorio Jano to leave Fiat and take over Merosi’s work.

In 1925, Alfa Romeo unveiled the P2 Grand Prix Car, Jano’s first car with Romeo and widely considered the first “supercar.” The P2 was powered by a straight-8 cylinder supercharged engine, and placed first in 14 Grand Pix races between 1924 and 1930. Today, the P2 Grand Prix is considered one of the most rarified of the collectible antique cars, with less than a dozen still intact.

This year marks the return of Alfa Romeo to the United States. Their current sports car, the 8C Competizione, is stunning with its sleek lines, 4.7L 6-cylinder engine & a top speed of 181 mph. This car is destined to send ripples throughout the US market.

Ferrari: High Performance, Luxury Cars

After racing Alfa Romeos in the 1920′s & 30′s, Enzo Ferrari decided that he wanted to build his own racecars. He prototyped a few models in the 1940′s, but it wasn’t until after World War II that he found success. Notably, Ferrari’s exotic sports cars took first place in the Formula 1 World Championships, 24 Hours of Le Mans and the World Sportscar Championships throughout the 1950′s.

Ferrari’s Gran Turismo series remains its most successful lines, with the 2007 599 GTB Fiorano bringing even more luxury and innovation to the table. Patrons of the Ferrari Club of America cite performance as the primary reason for purchasing a Ferrari over other collectible cars.

Lamborghini : Exotic Sports Cars for a New Generation

Ferruccio Lamborghini had a successful business building tractors in Italy before his eyes turned to the exotic sports car. And it wasn’t a love for performance that stirred his fire, but a disdain for Enzo Ferrari.

According to Lamborghini’s family, Ferruccio purchased a Ferrari 250 GT in the early 1960′s and was unhappy with the handling & response of the clutch. He brought it into Ferrari’s factory and met with Enzo Ferrari to voice his concerns. Ferrari was immediately upset with Lamborghini’s complaints so he mocked Lamborghini and sent him away. Lamborghini went home, dismantled the car and discovered that the clutches installed in Ferraris were from the same manufacturers he used for his tractors. He installed a new clutch and vowed to create a higher-quality, luxury sports car than Ferrari.

While Lamborghini has countless models that produce awe and wonder in car enthusiasts, it’s the 1974 Countach that remains their most iconic. Designer Marcello Gandini, then just beginning his career, placed his focus on style over aerodynamics. With its scissor doors, sharp lines and low, wide frame, the Countach raised the bar for Lamborghini. The Diablo, the Murciélago, and even the 2008 Reventón follow in its wake.

Aston Martin: Unforgettable Collectible Cars

Britain’s Aston Martin was founded by Lionel Martin & Robert Bamford in 1914. They designed exotic sports cars and drove in competitions, but it wasn’t until David Brown became managing director of the company in 1947 that they were able to establish themselves as a maker of high-quality, high-performance sports cars. They introduced the DB line (DB standing for David Brown) in 1950, and many of their models have become synonymous with antique and collectible cars.

Newer DB models include the luxurious DB-7, which was designed by Ian Callum and produced from 1994 to 2001. This model won the Jim Clark Award in 1995, and remains Aston Martin’s most successful car to-date.

Where to Find Collectible Cars for Sale

Buying and selling exotic sports cars is a specialized process that requires a credible and secure collector car trader. Some of the best experts are other exotic sports car owners. To find out more about buying and selling antique cars or classic collectible cars the first place to look are exotic sports car clubs such as http://www.lamborghiniclub.com or [http://www.exoticcarrental.com/FerrariClubs.com]

Interested in online car dealers that specialize in buying and selling exotic sports cars? Check out http://www.chooseyouritem.com/exotics/dealerpage.html, ebay classic cars and a new website called [http://www.HighEndCrazy.com] These sites will get you started on the road to driving the exotic sports car of your dreams.

John Green is an Electrical Engineer who has worked for prestigious companies, such as Kimberly-Clark Corporation and Union Switch and Signal Corporation where he oversaw completion of large commercial projects. John was frustrated with hard to use websites while selling some luxury merchandise online. So he teamed with his brother, Richard, to develop a website for buyers and sellers of luxury merchandise. Visit: [http://www.HighEndCrazy.com] or email highendcrazy@bellsouth.net for more information.

I have to laugh when I think of the times I watched the television program, “Flash Gordon,” as he putted through outer space in his make-believe space ship, talking on his make-believe wireless radio, and dressed in his make-believe space suit. Well, I’m not laughing anymore. Today we have shuttled astronauts into outer space, have men living in a Space Station, have space suites that take your temperature and gauge your heart rate, and wireless communication devices that send pictures to Planet Earth. Far fetched from reality? Not anymore. As we speak, the future is starring us in the face, waiting to see how we will promote her in the next 5-10 years.

How did science-fiction become reality over the past 50 years? Let’s consider one aspect of innovation: the learning environment – post secondary education. Why post secondary education, you may ask? As post secondary education population increases, programs to accommodate students will develop into curriculum that affords students the freedom to create and design systems they toy with on a daily basis. Are there risks involved in this adaptation process? There are risks involved when change occurs, and leadership should be aware of how to diplomatically confront the risk areas that could slow down progress. Some of the risks that could be encountered due to change are:

o Systems risks

o Subsystem risks

o People

o Financial/economic risks

o Societal/Cultural risks

If communication between systems, subsystems, people, and cultures within the organizational environment has established a strong communication system, risks factors will be at a minimum as long as the creative teams are honest and upfront about their reservations to change.

Let’s look into the future through ‘futureoculers’ and see how the universe of learning can be brought into the present. I want to introduce to you five (5) key trends that I believe affect the current learning environment, can create change, and renovate the perspective of learners and educators for students of the future. These trends could be the key in creating a new perspective in post secondary education for an institution. The key trends are:

o Competitive classroom learning environments – campus on-site/online/distant

o Increase in technological tools

o Teaching/learning environments-more hands on

o Global expansion capability-internal and external

o Student input in the creative learning process

Navigational Systems

Before the five (5) key trends are defined, there needs to be an acknowledgement of how the trends will be supported and regulated through a changing environment. According to de Kluyver, and Pearce, II, having the right systems and processes/subsystems enhances organizational effectiveness and facilitates coping with change. Misaligned systems and processes can be a powerful drag on an organization’s ability to adapt. Therefore, check what effect, if any, current systems and processes are likely to have on a company’s ability to implement a particular strategy is well advised. Support systems such as a company’s planning, budgeting, accounting, information and reward and incentive systems can be critical to successful strategy implementation. Although they do not by themselves define a sustainable competitive advantage, superior support systems help a company adapt more quickly and effectively to changing requirements. A well-designed planning system ensures that planning is an orderly process, gets the right amount of attention by the right executives, and has a balanced external and internal focus. Budgeting and accounting systems are valuable in providing accurate historical data, setting benchmarks and targets, and defining measures of performance. A state-of-the-art information system supports all other corporate systems, and it facilitates analysis as well as internal and external communications. Finally, a properly designed reward and incentive system is key to creating energy through motivation and commitment. A process (or subsystem) is a systematic way of doing things. Processes can be formal or informal; they define organization roles and relationships, and they can facilitate or obstruct change. Some processes or subsystems look beyond immediate issues of implementation to an explicit focus on developing a stronger capacity for adapting to change. Processes/subsystems aimed at creating a learning organization and at fostering continuous improvement are good examples. As an example, processes or subsystems are functional and maintain the operation of the system; the system may be Student Services and the subsystem may be the Financial Aid office or Admissions. Subsystems can be more in depth in relation to office operations, which involves employee positions and their culture; financial advisors, academic advisors, guidance counselors. These operations are functions performed on the human level and could have a positive or negative impact in the development of key trends. If employees are valued and rewarded for their dedication and service, the outcome will be responsible, committed employees for the success of their subsystem.

The Navigator

Every navigator needs a map, a plan, a driver to give direction to for a successful trip. In this case, the driver is several elements:

o Service integrity, reputation

o Affordability with an open door concept

Hughes and Beatty relate drivers as Strategic drivers; those relatively few determinants of sustainable competitive advantage for a particular organization in a particular industry or competitive environment (also called factors of competitive success, key success factors, key value propositions). The reason for identifying a relatively small number of strategic drivers for an organization is primarily to ensure that people become focused about what pattern of inherently limited investments will give the greatest strategic leverage and competitive advantage. Drivers can change over time, or the relative emphasis on those drivers can change, as an organization satisfies its key driver. In the case of post secondary education, drivers help measure success rates in the area of course completion ratio, student retention, and transfer acceptance into a university and/or the successful employment of students. Because change is so rampant in education, it is wise for leadership to anticipate change and develop a spirit of foresight to keep up with global trends.

Drivers can help identify the integrity of internal and external functions of systems and subsystems, as mentioned previously, by identifying entity types that feed the drivers’ success. They are:

o Clientele Industry – external Market – feeder high schools, cultural and socio-economic demographic and geographic populations

- Competitors – local and online educational systems

- Nature of Industry – promote a learning community

- Governmental influences – licensed curriculum programs supported by local, state, and federal funds

- Economic and social influences – job market, employers, outreach programs

o College Planning and Environment – internal

- Capacity – Open door environment

- Products and services – high demand curriculum programs that meet, local, state, and federal high demand employment needs

- Market position – Promote on and off-campus activities that attract clientele

- Customers – traditional and non-traditional credit and non-credit students

- Systems, processes, and structures – trained staff and state-of-the art technical systems

- Leadership – integrity-driven, compassionate leadership teams

- Organizational culture – promote on-campus activities promoting a proactive environment for students

According to Hughes and Beatty, these functions can assimilate into the Vision, Mission, and Values statements to define the key strategic drivers for developing successful environments.

Navigating Towards a Destination

With the recognition of systems, subsystems, and drivers, we can see our destination in the distance and their value in building a foundation to support the five key trends. The five (5) key trends will help define strategic thinking in a global perspective; the understanding of futuristic thinking that encompasses: risk taking, imagination, creativity, communication among leadership, and a perspective of how the future can fit into today’s agenda. The five (5) key trends are:

1. Competitive Classroom Learning Environments – campus on-site/online/distant

One of the major attractions in education today is to accommodate a student at every level: academically, financially, and socially. These three environments are the mainstream of why one school is selected over another school. Today there is a change in tide. Students who once competed for seats in post secondary schools are becoming a valued asset as post secondary schools compete between each other for students. High schools are no longer the only feeder into colleges. Today, students are coming from home schools, career schools, charter schools, high risk schools, private schools, religious schools, work environments, and ATB tested environments. So, how can the educational system attract students and keep them motivated in an interactive learning environment they can grow in? Wacker and Taylor writes that the story of every great enterprise begins with the delivery of a promise, and every product a great enterprise makes is nothing but an artifact of the truth of that promise. So what great enterprise can be created to attract new students? By creating learning/teaching environments, post secondary schools can prepare students to meet the demands of everyday life and their life in the community. Schools can consider incorporating a learning model to enable professors and/or community leaders/entrepreneurs to team teach in the classroom/online environment. Team Teaching will contribute valuable views into the learning environment, as well as, give students the working community’s real-time perspective. In an excerpt from “The University at the Millennium: The Glion Declaration” (1998) quoted by Frank H.T. Rhodes, President Emeritus of Cornell University, for the Louisiana State Board of Regents report, Dr. Rhodes wrote that universities are learning communities, created and supported because of the need of students to learn, the benefit to scholars of intellectual community, and the importance to society of new knowledge, educated leaders, informed citizens, expert professional skills and training, and individual certification and accreditation. Those functions remain distinctive, essential contributions to society; they form the basis of an unwritten social compact, by which, in exchange for the effective and responsible provision of those services, the public supports the university, contributes to its finance, accepts its professional judgment and scholarly certification, and grants it a unique degree of institutional autonomy and scholarly freedom. To experience education is learning, to exercise knowledge is freedom, and to combine them is wisdom.

2. Teaching/learning environments-more hands on

As post secondary educators relinquish hands-on-chalk-board teaching styles and establish group teaching models, students will develop a greater understanding of the theme of the class environment as well as the professor in developing an understanding of the class cultures’ stance in learning. Educators are discovering that inclusive learning styles are revamping the teaching model and becoming a positive influence in retention, better grades, camaraderie among students, and a greater respect for the professor. As professors learn to develop relationships with students, interaction will transpire, lecturing will be condensed into a time frame and interactive learning between students and professor will enhance the classroom environment.

3. Global expansion capability-internal and external

Students are surrounded by virtual global environments or are impacted by global elements: the clothes they wear are made overseas, the games they play on their electronic toys are created overseas, the war games they play are created to identify with global war games, etc. The only draw back to this scenario is a truly global learning experience. What they are seeing is not what they are getting; a real time global experience. James Morrison writes that in order to meet unprecedented demand for access, colleges and universities need to expand their use of IT tools via online learning, which will enable them to teach more students without building more classrooms. Moreover, in order for professors to prepare their pupils for success in the global economy, they need to ensure that students can access, analyze, process, and communicate information; use information technology tools; work with people from different cultural backgrounds; and engage in continuous, self-directed learning. Christopher Hayter writes that post secondary schools need to be ‘Globally Focused’ for the 21st century that includes a global marketplace and be internationally focused. This means ensuring that skills needed to compete in a global marketplace are taught and that the mastery of such skills by students is internationally benchmarked. It may also mean a new emphasis on learning languages and understanding other cultures and the business practices of other countries.

More and more businesses are expanding into the global marketplace, opening corporate offices in foreign countries and hiring and training employees from those countries. Are our college graduates being trained to assimilate into cultures and work side-by-side with employees who may not be able to relate to them? Developing curriculums accommodating social and cultural entities will propel a student into higher realms of learning and create change in the individual student as well as support their career for their future.

4. Student input in the creative learning process

Professors are the gatekeepers in education. However, as Baby Boomer Professors begin to exit the educational workforce and head down the path of retirement, younger generation professors will take their place bringing with them innovative teaching methods that can expand the learning process. Are post secondary educators equipped to prepare for the onslaught of younger generation educators needed to be trained for this mega shift in the workforce? Most important, will those professors caught between Boomers and Xer’s be willing to adapt to change in the education industry to accommodate incoming generations? I believe younger generations will impact even the technological industry and challenge change that will equip them for their future. Previous generation students slowly adapted to technological advances. The good news is change can occur, and educators can utilize life experiences from students familiar with technology tools and create fascinating learning environments.

5. Increase in Technological tools

In an Executive Summary written for the National Governors Association in a report called “Innovation America – A Compact for Post Secondary Education,” the report reads that while post secondary education in the United States has already achieved key successes in the innovation economy, the public post secondary education system overall risks falling behind its counterparts in many other nations around the world-places where there have been massive efforts to link post secondary education to the specific innovation needs of industries and regions. According to this report, American post secondary education is losing ground in the race to produce innovative and imaginative realms in education. Can this trend be counteracted? With the cooperation of post secondary educational institutions within each community, leadership can create co-op learning environments that can be supported through e-learning and online teaching that can provide virtual reality technology to enhance real-time learning environments. Through Business Development operations currently established in post secondary institutions, a shared technology program can be created that will afford students access to ongoing virtual business environment settings and prepare students with knowledge and insight into a specific industry. As students prepare to transfer, graduate, or seek employment after completing a certification program, virtual experience in the job market can help a student assimilate education and work experience to their advantage. This concept could challenge Human Resource departments to create new mandates in accepting virtual-experienced college graduates as they enter the workforce.

Reaching the Destination

As Flash Gordan lands his Spacecraft on unclaimed territory, you imagine yourself slowly turning the handle to the spaceship with your spaceship gloves, opening the door with explosive anticipation. Your heart racing, sweat running down your brow, and your eyes at half mask waiting to see a new world; a world filled with beauty and potential when suddenly, the television shuts off and your Mom is standing in front of you telling you to get up and go clean your room and stop daydreaming! Ah, Mom, you say to yourself, you just destroyed my imaginary planet! Oh, by the way, did I mention that this was you as a child growing up and using your imagination?

Now that I’ve created a visual world of potential for you can you see the power within to see the future from the present and help others visualize the potential benefits of change in their lives and the lives of others in an organization? T. Irene Sanders states that thinking in pictures helps us link our intuitive sense of events in the world with our intellectual understanding. Now, more than ever, we need to integrate the techniques of imagination and the skill of intuition with our analytic competencies to help us see and understand the complexities that vex us daily. Visualization is the key to insight and foresight-and the next revolution in strategic thinking and planning.

Can you SEE the systems, subsystems, drivers, and the five (5) trends with a visual perspective in a post secondary educational environment? This is the nature of Strategic Thinking, which can or is taking place in your organization; a cognitive process required for the collection, interpretation, generation, and evaluation of information and ideas that shape an organization’s sustainable competitive advantage. The need to stay abreast of progress, technology, and global opportunities will be the change in drivers that will validate the creative elements needed to stay attuned in a global perspective. The author’s intention of introducing Flash Gordan into the paper was to create a visual image and demonstrate imagination fulfillment to a present day reality. Is there anything out there that cannot be done if it is fine tuned and prepared for a service of excellence? What are the risks involved by not exercising strategic thinking in the elements mentioned in this article?

Education is not about the present it’s about the future. The five (5) trends are only a beginning adventure into an unknown space. Do you remember when you were in college and wished things were done differently, be more exciting, more adventurous? Consider the age groups becoming proficient in technology. Will post secondary educators be prepared to teach/instruct future students? Educators must invite strategic thinking into the system and take the risks needed to build post secondary education back into the global futuristic race of achievement. In an article written by Arthur Hauptman entitled “Strategies for Improving Student Success in Post secondary Education” (07), he concluded his report listing four elements:

1. While there is a growing rhetorical commitment to student success, the reality is that policies often do not mirror the rhetoric. Whether intentional or not, policies in many states are at best benign and often antithetical to improving student success.

2. Policy focus in most states has been to lower tuitions or the provision of student financial aid. This ignores the importance of ensuring adequate supply of seats to accommodate all students as well as providing a proper set of incentives that encourage institutions to recruit, enroll, and graduate the students who are most at-risk.

3. Some progress has been made in developing contemporary practices that have great potential for providing the right incentives in place of redress this traditional imbalance. But much more needs to be done in this regard.

4. Efforts to create incentives for students to be better prepared and for institutions to enroll and graduate more at-risk students have the potential for greatly improving rates of retention and degree completion.

Can the five trends be a stepping stone in rebuilding or strengthening the weakest link in the system? The evidence of deficiency is public, and that’s a good start. Educators have the choice to rebuild and prepare for the advancement of our future; our students. I encourage you to take the five (5) trends and see how they can accommodate your institute of higher learning.

Board of Regents, State of Louisiana. (2001). Master Plan for Public Postsecondary Education: 2001. Excerpt written by Frank H.T. Rhodes, President, Emeritus of Cornell University from “The University at the Millennium: The Glion Declaration” (1998). http://www.regents.state.la.us/pdfs/Planning/masterplan2001.pdf

de Kluyver, Cornelis A. & Pearce, II, John A. (2006). STRATEGY: A View from the Top (An Executive Perspective). 2nd Ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson/Prentice Hall Publishers. Pgs. 19-20.

Hauptman, Arthur M. (2007). “Strategies for Improving Student Success in Postsecondary Education.” Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. Supported by a grant from Lumina Foundation for Education. Boulder, CO: Policy Analysis and Research unit. Pg. 20.

Hayter, Christopher. (2007). Innovation America – A Compact for Postsecondary Education. National Governors Association. Washington, D.C.: NGA. Pg. 4.

Hughes, Richard L. & Beatty, Katherine Colarelli. (2005). Becoming a Strategic Leader. Your Role in Your Organization’s Enduring Success. Center for Creative Leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Pg. 27.

Morrison, James. 2003. U.S. Higher Education in Transition. On the Horizon, 11(1), pp. 6-10. Posted on U.S. Higher Education in Transition web site with permission from Emerald. http://horizon.unc.edu/courses/papers/InTransition.html

Raymond, Alexander Gillespie (Creator & Artist). (1934-1940). Buster Crabbe: Flash Gordan (1936), Flash Gordan’s Trip to Mars (1938), & Flash Gordan Conquers the Universe (1940). United States: Hearst Entertainment, Inc.

Sanders, T. Irene. (1998). Strategic Thinking and the New Science. Planning in the Midst of Chaos, Complexity, and Change. New York, NY: The FREE PRESS. pg. 84.

Wacker, Watts & Taylor, Jim. (2000). The Visionary’s Handbook. Nine Paradoxes That Will Shape the Future of Your Business. New York, NY: Harper Business Publication. Pg. 144.

Fashion marketing is undergoing a quiet revolution at the moment. Traditionally new fashion designers have had to compete with the major corporate labels through magazine advertising, direct mail, events promotions and if the budget is there, television ad campaigns. The Internet has for a long time been a useful tool for introducing sales leads to your clothing range, but until recently, budget dictated your site’s popularity on the net.

Things are rapidly changing, and it is almost all due to the Social Networking phenomenon. You will have no doubt heard of Facebook and MySpace, however over the past couple of years there has been a distinct increase in social community sites that have geared themselves towards the consumer lifestyle market, and in particularly fashion. Many of these online communities run on a democratic principle. Ideally, if enough people vote or bookmark a particular product, say a t-shirt for example, the product and designer’s popularity increases. Within a relatively short time. Using tools such as bookmark sharing and recommendations, a relatively unknown designer can attract an enormous amount of positive publicity.

I have researched and collated a list of the most popular and useful fashion social networks for you to browse at your own leisure. You will find there is a wide variety and scope offered by these fashion-related communities. The larger and more established sites are great for breaking new products in to the fashion consumer market, others will provide invaluable assistance from fellow designers, retailers and manufacturers. Most of whom I am sure will be more than willing to guide you through the next stages of your burgeoning fashion career.

Fashionising.com is dedicated to fashion, this social fashion community offering a news, photo and video service for upcoming and established designers, labels, models and more. Very friendly and welcoming community, mainly professionals in all fields of fashion.

Stylehive.com is an online style portal for people who love and/or work in fashion, design and retail. You can connect with fellow style addicts and share all of your new design discoveries and latest finds together. A trend-setters social-networking club, part pop-culture lab, Stylehive.com is one big ensemble cast of trend-setters creating, discovering and buying the next big thing!

Kaboodle.com is a social shopping network where people discover, recommend and share products. Kaboodle’s excellent range of shopping widgets mean you can begin organizing all your favorite items in shared lists, discovering new things from people with similar style. Easy to find the best prices and discounts on the most popular products. This site offers fashion products amongst many others including gadgets, soft furnishings, art and more.

ThisNext.com focuses its online and social-shopping community more towards the next big trends. Your popular votes count, everyone recommends their favorite up and coming products for others to discover and purchase online. This global community is in the pursuit of cross-cultural shopping habits for the year to come. This site is laden with more branded advertising and e-commerce solutions making it a more attractive media platform for corporate marketing. The system encompasses each product in a process of discovery, consideration, trial and purchase. Fashion is a big favorite here.

StyleFeeder.com is a personal shopping engine that uses a unique matchmaking system to offer daily personal recommendations, just for you. It’s a great way to find new clothes, shoes, in fact anything stylish and keep track of what you’re shopping for online, using visual their bookmark options. Great widgets for incorporating your style-feeds in to your personal blogs or commercial sites. I regularly use this site to promote my own fashion — a great resource for designers.

ShareYourLook.com is a new fashion community for all trends-setters, shoppers and designers, (currently in beta). If you read articles New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, you will probably recognize the co-founder’s name – fashion have appeared in The New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, fashion journalist Melissa Ceria. The format is easy to use and on the eye: upload photos of you modeling your favorite outfits, and let other members rate your look and leave you comments. Don’t worry, there is a policy of fair and objective criticism, even compliments and most of all useful style tips. The whole site relies on a great blog style tagging process, plus a great feature where you’ll be able to post favourite ‘looks’ to your network of fashion friends. You even get your own styleblog.

OsoYou.com is the UK’s first social networking and fashion website. Focusing more on High Street fashion and all the latest clothing items, plus features on the hottest celebrity styles and a chance to share fashion with your friends via some innovative social networking options.

Avenue7.com should be classed as up and coming. From my research it seems to be aimed at a younger audience. They already use some rather clever programming to help you create your own perfect outfit and also offer fashion scouts. However there are some even more promising features in the pipeline including ‘The Fashion Show’ and ‘Start a Makeover’. This is more of a hot or not direction for the field of fashion social networking, but it’s bright, bold and adventurous and I’ll take a punt it will do well in the future.

StyleMob.com is rather funky looking (though corporate owned) street style community StyleMob offering a service that is part Hot or Not, part fashion magazine and part MySpace.

TeamSugar.com is one of the latest contributions to the market. Backed by the Sugar Network, this series of blogs primarily targets fashion-conscious women. The most popular is PopSugar.com, where celebrity gossip and fashion come together in a hedonistic mix. TeamSugar.com pro-actively promote their content, encouraging their community to form around it. Blog syndication integrates the network — PopSugar.com, DearSugar.com, TeamSugar.com and FabSugar.com, encouraging users to switch sites to see the latest news on each one. Ultra intelligent marketing – helping to boost the popularity of the whole network at the same time. Standard social networking features friends list, leave comments, send messages, write a blog and voting in polls.

This supplemental list offers links to more general/shopping social networks that feature some fashion content, and a few to keep an eye out for in the future:

TheFind.com is the leading shopping search engine to find stores, brands and products, bigger than any other product finder online.

ShopWiki.com is a shopping search engine designed to help consumers find specific products on the Internet with ease. It is the only shopping search engine that combines advanced Web-crawling technology with a consumer-written wiki.

Etsy.com is an online marketplace for buying & selling all things handmade and only handmade.

Fastmatch.com Very new and more social model, however the site is currently still in beta and the interface needs some serious work.

Whatsbuzzing.com Productwiki.com Yub.com Selfploitation.com A brand new site for artists to help each other to promote/sell their products.

To read more fashion related articles visit our popular street wear blog at http://buy-tees.net

Survival of the Savvy: High-Integrity Political Tactics for Career and Company Success

Authors: Rick Brandon Ph.D. and Marty Seldman Ph.D.

Survival of the Savvy was on my bookshelf about a month before I had the privilege of meeting the author, Rick Brandon, at a leadership conference in San Francisco where we both were speaking. Our talks were at different times so I was able to attend Rick’s presentation.

That was when I realized how important this book could be to all the women I work with who are sometimes underestimated, overlooked, and denied proper recognition for their accomplishments because they abhor and avoid anything associated with the word politics. If this sounds like you, you are not alone.

Survival of the fittest! That is what it feels like in the work world sometimes. I know how tough it can be. I have worked in business since the mid 1980′s where I have witnessed political games of all sorts – power struggles, back biting, turf wars, and blind ambition.

Reading the book you will learn that the stereotypical image of the term ‘political’, that usually is thought of as overly political and at time unethical behaviors are definitely not what the authors are recommending.

Survival of the Savvy describes the political style continuum that ranges from the less political type who believe hard work, facts, and good ideas are enough to the overly political individuals driven by self-interest.

Brandon and Seldman suggest a high integrity middle ground (aka ethical and more palatable,) approach to politics that even the most politically averse can employ. They call it the green light/safe travel zone. This vital balance is neither too political nor politically naive.

Power and politics are not dirty words. You can promote yourself with integrity. These are important messages in the book for all women in business and especially for those in the traditionally less political career tracks who want to advance to leadership positions – women in science, R&D, Information Technology, engineering, and other technical fields.

The authors successfully help readers, who hate the thought of workplace politics, reframe how they think about power and politics. They offer useful and practical advice even for the political novice.

The further you advance, the more vulnerable you are if you remain politically naive. The authors claim in their experience ethical political skills are a leadership competency.

If you want to get ahead, but are so opposed to the concept of politics and to any of the ideas in the book the day will come when your subject matter and expert technical status are no longer good enough for you to advance. Your career will plateau. Shunning even high integrity, ethical politics can mean you are destined to succeed only in a job in the ranks below management and leadership. If you do progress into management you are at risk to derail in all but the most non-political cultures.

Reading and applying the information in the book is not easy but worthwhile for all who want to land the top jobs and earn the income they deserve. If you feel frustrated or have plateaued in your career advancement, it may be a political blind spot and reading this book can help.

Although not a book written specifically for women, the authors offer ‘political’ success strategies especially relevant for women.

Jean Caton is a Career, Business, and Life Coach, Speaker, and Virtual Educator. She has over 20 years of business experience working in four Fortune 500 companies. Now, as an entrepreneur, Jean combines her practical experience in business, with her education and training, to coach, teach, inspire, and empower others. She invites you to visit her website to learn more. http://www.JeanCaton.net

Jean helps women move to the top in their careers or small business. Her clients strengthen their business savvy and expertise and develop the self-confidence required to advance to increasingly higher levels in their organization or business. Take a taste of what Jean can offer you by requesting a complimentary telephone coaching conversation. http://www.JeanCaton.net You may also get a sample of Jean’s expertise by joining one of her complimentary preview teleclasses.

Jean specializes in entrepreneurial women and those working in the health, science, pharma and engineering fields.

Jean has an MBA from Boston University and is a graduate of the Advanced Coach Training Program of Coach U.

Auto repair is a headache for motorists all over the world. Repair and replacement of parts have become so costly that motorists are looking for cheap auto repair as an alternative to regular repair.

Many auto repair firms advertise to repair vehicles at cheap rates but they do this by using inferior parts and employing unskilled workers. Generally, specialized shops, including transmission repair and old car repair shops, offer cheaper auto repairs compared to general shops. There are even general repair shops that provide you quality repair at cheaper rates.

It is imperative that you discuss the exact nature of the repair job and take time with the mechanic before you actually launch the repair. Most of the modern vehicles have computerized monitoring systems, which help mechanics identify problems easily. Auto repair manuals and guides call tell you details of each repair job and the normal time taken for each. These manuals can be bought from auto parts shops in your neighborhood.

Online you can find many experienced mechanics advertising cheap auto repair. They do brake jobs for as little as $50.00 and many other repair jobs just as cheap. There are also part-time mechanics who do most of their work at their own house and are ready to do cheap auto repair on request.

Cheap auto repair is usually sought by people who are money-minded. Cheap repair has many drawbacks too. It is not reliable, and often functionality is not guaranteed. Mechanics doing cheap auto repair generally do not give proper attention and, in many cases, inferior parts are used. Cheap auto repair can lead to long-term problems that may sometimes cost you much more money in the long run.

Auto Repair provides detailed information on Auto Repair, Auto Glass Repair, Online Auto Repair, Auto Body Repair and more. Auto Repair is affiliated with Discount Auto Parts.

Finding gourmet cooking supplies is not as difficult as it used to be. In many ways, it has become easier for you to find all of the supplies that you want and need readily available. This is due in part to more and more people looking for the opportunity to prepare gourmet quality meals at home. Those hard to find but fun tools to use are readily available today. One of the best places to find them is on the web. Yet, finding gourmet cooking supplies is only the start. You also need to consider what else it takes to prepare these meals for you and your family, or perhaps even your clients.

Getting Your Gourmet Cooking Started

The first goal is to find the gourmet cooking supplies that you need. You can find most of them available in a variety of brands that you know and love. Many of the appliances, utensils and other products you need are readily available by brands that used to cater to just the public. Or, you can purchase professional quality products and use them in your home. The goal is to choose supplies that you need and that you can easily use. Look for the highest quality which means that the supplies should be high end, long lasting, easy to use and definitely worth the investment.

If you are new to gourmet cooking, it has become increasingly easy for you to find the education that you need here, too. In most areas there are gourmet cooking schools available that can help you. These are available through culinary schools even to the general public and students not looking to become chefs, but just those wanting to learn how to prepare better quality meals for their family. You don’t have to get a degree to learn the important aspects of gourmet cooking.

Besides having the right gourmet cooking supplies and education, you will need the freshest quality foods. There are several key ways to get this. You should make relationships with your butcher, your fish monger and with your local market vendors. Here you can get the best quality foods for your gourmet meals. You can also find many of those hard to find products available to you at the local supermarket or on the web. This allows anyone to have exactly what they need.

When it comes to gourmet cooking supplies, what you need and what you want can be had by you through the best companies out there. You can be someone that prepared luxury meals and you can find all that you need to make this happen easily today.

Ronald Piper is an online researcher who publishes new information on specialized topics. He provides daily, relevant information and updated content on your favorite interests. To view more articles related to this particular subject, please visit his website at: ronaldpiper.com

Stage fright Is Good and Makes You Better Looking Too!

Before you learn how to speak in public, it is important to be ready to speak in public. Stage fright is a phenomenon that you must learn to control if you want to be good at public speaking. Actually, stage fright isn’t the most accurate term for the nervousness that occurs when considering a speaking engagement. In fact, most of the fear occurs before you step on-stage. Once you’re up there, it usually goes away. Try to think of stage fright in a positive way. Fear is your friend. It makes your reflexes sharper. It heightens your energy, adds a sparkle to your eye, and color to your cheeks. When you are nervous about speaking, you are more conscious of your posture and breathing. With all those good side effects you will actually look healthier and more physically attractive.

When making public performances, many of the top performers in the world get stage fright so you are in good company. Stage fright may come and go or diminish, but it usually does not vanish permanently. You must concentrate on getting the feeling out in the open, into perspective and under control.

Remember Nobody ever died from stage fright or speaking in public. But, according to surveys, many people would rather die than speak in public. If that applies to you, try out some of the strategies in this section to help get yourself under control. Realize that you may never overcome stage fright, but you can learn to control it, and use it to your advantage in your public speaking efforts.

Symptoms of Stage fright

* Dry mouth.

* Tight throat.

* Sweaty hands.

* Cold hands.

* Shaky hands.

* Give me a hand (Oops, I couldn’t resist).

* Nausea.

* Fast pulse.

* Shaky knees.

* Trembling lips.

Any out-of-the-ordinary outward or inward feeling or manifestation of a feeling occurring before, or during, the beginning of a public speaking engagement (Wow! What a dry mouthful!).

Here are some easy to implement strategies for reducing your stage fright.

Not everyone reacts the same and there is no universal fix. Don’t try to use all these fixes at once. Pick out items from this list and try them out until you find the right combination for you.

Visualization strategies that can be used anytime

* Concentrate on how good you are at public speaking.

* Pretend you are just chatting with a group of friends.

* Close your eyes and imagine the audience listening, laughing, and applauding.

* Remember happy moments from your past.

* Think about your love for and desire to help the audience.

* Picture the audience in their underwear.

Strategies in advance of program

* Be extremely well prepared.

* Join or start a Toastmasters club for extra practice.

* Get individual or group public speaking coaching.

* Listen to music.

* Read a poem.

* Anticipate hard and easy questions.

* Organize your speaking notes.

* Absolutely memorize your opening statement so you can recite it on autopilot if you have to.

* Practice, practice, practice. Especially practice bits so you can spit out a few minutes of your program no matter how nervous you are.

* Get in shape. I don’t know why it helps stage fright, but it does.

Strategies just before the program Remember Stage fright usually goes away after you start. The tricky time is before you start.

* Be in the room at least an hour early if possible to triple check the public address system and everything else on your checklist. You can also schmooze with participants arriving early.

* Notice and think about things around you.

* Concentrate on searching for current and immediate things that are happening at the event that you can mention during your speech (especially in the opening).

* Get into conversation with people near you. Be very intent on what they are saying.

* Yawn to relax your throat.

* Doodle.

* Draw sketches of a new car you would like to have.

* Look at your notes.

* Put pictures of your kids/grandkids, dog, etc., in your notes.

* Build a cushion of time in the day so you are not rushed, but not too much time. You don’t want to have extra time to worry.

* If your legs are trembling, lean on a table, sit down, or shift your legs.

* Take a quick walk.

* Take quick drinks of tepid water.

* Double check your A/V equipment including the public address system, projectors, etc..

* Don’t drink alcohol or coffee or tea with caffeine.

* Concentrate on your speaking ideas.

* Hide speaking notes around the stage area so you know you have a backup if you happen to draw a blank.

* Concentrate on your audience.

* Listen to music.

* Read a poem.

* Do isometrics that tighten and release muscles.

* Shake hands and smile with attendees before the program.

* Say something to someone to make sure your voice is ready to go.

* Go somewhere private and warm up your voice, muscles, etc.

* Use eye contact.

* Go to a mirror and check out how you look.

* Breathe deeply, evenly, and slowly for several minutes.

* Don’t eat if you don’t want to and never take tranquilizers or other such drugs. You may think you will do better, but you will probably do worse and not know it.

Strategies when the program begins

* If legs are trembling, lean on lectern /table or shift legs or move

* Try not to hold the microphone by hand in the first minute.

* Don’t hold notes. The audience can see them shake. Use three-by-five cards instead.

* Take quick drinks of tepid water.

* Use eye contact. It will make you feel less isolated.

* Look at the friendliest faces in the audience.

* Joke about your nervousness. What’s the right wine to go with fingernails?

Remember nervousness doesn’t show one-tenth as much as it feels. Before each speaking engagement make a short list of the items you think will make you feel better. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different combinations. You never know which ones will work best until you try. Rewrite them on a separate sheet and keep the sheet with you at all times so you can refer to it quickly when the need arises.

When speaking in public use these steps to control stage fright so it doesn’t control you.

How do you become a great speaker and get paid for it?

Learn the public speaking techniques that will create the career of your dreams and change other people’s lives forever. It’s easier than you think!

Tom Antion provides entertaining speeches and educational seminars. He is the ultimate entrepreneur, having owned many businesses BEFORE graduating college. Tom is the author of the best selling presentation skills book “Wake ‘em Up Business Presentations” and “Click: The Ultimate Guide to Electronic Marketing.” It is important to Tom that his knowledge be not only absorbed, but enjoyed. This is why he delivers his speeches laced with great humor and hysterical jokes. Tom has addressed more than 87 different industries and is thoroughly committed to his clients’ needs. http://www.antion.com

So, What is a “Money Making Blog”?

OK, that’s when someone stops me and says,”What’s a Blog?”

So, Lets start at the beginning!

Blog Basics

A blog is sometimes called web log or weblog. It is a type if online journal or diary, often including personal comments as well as web links and images. Many people keep a blog as a type of personal creative exercise, but you can easily use this popular online type of writing to market your business. Blogs are very popular right now and they can be a great and inexpensive way to contact more customers.

The great thing about blogs is that people read them for fun. Customers may be becoming more jaded about advertising, but they will gladly read a blog that has some interesting things to say. Many top companies are using blogs to deliver a better and more personal message about their companies – and the strategy seems to be working.

Starting a Blog

Starting a blog is as simple as finding a space online to write – and the time to write. To begin a blog, first develop a theme idea or blog idea. You may want to look at other people’s blogs to do so. In general, you will want to develop a central theme for your blog in the same way that columnists develop a theme for their articles. This helps ensure that your blog is not too “scattered.”

Next, find some place to publish your blog. There are a number of sites – both paying and free – that give bloggers a chance to publish their material. You may also want to simply set up your blog on your web site, especially if you already have an active web site.

Writing Your Blog

Once you have a place to publish your blog, you will have to set aside some time each week to develop new content. When writing your blog:

oWrite simply and clearly. Use small paragraphs and spell check before uploading. Your readers will trust what you have to say if you say it well.

oGo easy on the advertising. The idea of a blog is to give readers something fun and exciting to read and look at. You will have more readers if you comment on the world and are entertaining, rather than just hype your product. Consider writing about your day, the atmosphere your workplace has, and culture, rather than just your company.

oConsider many types of content. Blogs allow you to upload images, create links, and allow users to make comments. Your blog will have many more readers if you make your blog exciting with these pluses.

Promoting Your Blog

Just putting your blog online is not enough. After all, there are many millions of blogs on the web right now, so unless your blog is on a high-traffic site, you may not get readers unless you advertise. You can easily advertise your blog without spending a cent by mentioning your blog in your emails and web pages or newsletters. You can also enter in online competitions – if your blog wins a prize you are more likely to get a constant flow of traffic to your blog. You can also ask ezines and other content providers to review your blog, which will also draw readers.

Blog Marketing Ideas That Sell

Once you develop a blog, you will want to use the best blog marketing strategies you can to sell your company. However, marketing blogs are different from personal blogs and blog marketing or advertising is very different than other forms of marketing.

Make Your Blog a Customer Draw

In order to make your blog a powerful marketing tool, you need to get your customers and clients to see it. That means that you will need to advertise and provide content that gets attention:

oMake your blog visually exciting. Choose an attractive background colour and provide photos or images. Consider sound. Develop your blog as you would a web site, with the same visual appeal. Some bloggers even add video and sound to their blogs. There is no need to spend many hours composing art works, but know that simple text on a white background may simply not draw as many readers as you like.

oMake sure that your customers know that your blog exists. Providing some targeted advertising on the Internet is not hard. Try some link exchange programs with web sites, blogs, and ezines that have similar content to your blog. In many cases, simply providing a link to another web site can convince that web master to provide a link to your blog.

Make Your Blog a Company Pusher – Without Being Pushy

Your blog needs to promote your company. However, if you are too heavy-handed, you will not be terribly exciting and may push customers away. That’s why you should aim for only a small amount of content that actively pushes your company. Do suggest newsworthy items that will lure your readers in. For example, writing “today we launched a new division – now expecting mothers can take advantage of our fashions” is much better than sales copy such as “buy our hot new maternity fashions now.”

Give Your Readers What They Want

Studies suggest that as many as a quarter of Internet users tune into blogs. That means that if you can give your blog readers what they want, you can be reasonably sure of having a decent audience. Among the content that you may want to include in your blog:

oTips and advice. Many successful marketing blogs are much like successful consumer magazines – readers tune in to read content that is useful. A computer company can offer computer tips and advice, for example, while a writing service blog can include daily ways to boost writing skills.

oInterest. If your personal or business life is fascinating, then great. There are many successful marketing blogs that detail the exciting lives of company presidents who are also hobby racecar drivers or skydivers. This sort of material can ensure a steady audience.

oHumanity. One of the things that blog readers are most interested to see is the face behind the company. Many blog readers like a company run by people who have similar concerns. Building humanity into your blog by detailing your company’s efforts to help the community, for example, is a great way to build credibility and customer loyalty.

oStyle. Many readers just love to see a gorgeous, well-written blog. Plenty of marketing blogs simply provide interesting content and nice graphics and do quite well in drawing readers and customers.

Get More Readers for Your Blog, Get More Customers

There are several ways to make your blog one of the “hot” blogs online. Traditionally, those companies that have the largest star-power have had the most popular blogs, since everyone loves to read about celebrity or success. However, a great many smaller companies and individuals are developing large followings on the web. You can, too, with this simple lesson.

Keep it Rich

Keyword-rich, that is. Blogs are a great way to generate keyword-rich content, especially if you update your blogs each day. In fact, for some smaller businesses, blogs make more sense than hard-to-create web pages. Blog software makes creating a blog almost automatic while the spiders on search engines seem to favour high-quality and often updated keyword-rich blogs.

Steps to take:

oKeep keyword content high with plenty of keywords. As you write your blog entries, do try to use not only keywords having to do with your topic, but also synonyms for your keywords. This will help your readers find you more easily on the Internet. For example, if you offer discount fashions, use a variety of keywords, including “discount fashions,” “cheap designer wear,” “discount clothing” and others.

oProvide quality, often-updated content.

oSpecialize. The best way to make use of the search engine optimisation of blogs is to narrow your focus. Rather than developing a hodgepodge of ideas and themes, write with one theme in mind. It will help ensure that people looking for information on your topic will always find you through a search engine.

Join the Community

Make sure that you promote your blog by joining the blogging community. Creating a larger presence for your blog online will result in more blog readers and possibly, more customers:

oAdd the address for your blog to email signatures and include mention in any ezine or email newsletter you have to let readers know about your blog.

oMention your blog on appropriate forums. For example, if your company offers resume writing services, consider writing about your blog in job-hunt forums.

oAllow for readers’ commentary on your blog. Many online blog publishing programs already allow this. If your readers can post their comments and read the comments of other readers, they are more likely to return to your blog regularly, and so keep your company name in mind.

oMake your blog searchable through your interests. Many blog programs allow you to create a user profile, which allows readers to search for you and your blog by interest topic and locations, in many cases. Do not overlook this simple way to draw readers. Simply fill out your profile, taking care to use many “interests” to attract more readers and browsers.

Aliza Levine is a Total Blog Freak, and Internet Blog Marketer. She’a single mom who’s “been there” and is now living beyond her wildest dreams!If you’d like to get make money with Blogs, learn how for Free at http://www.PowerMoneyMachine.com

When it comes to Internet marketing the

biggest question is always what is effective?

You need an effective Internet marketing

strategy but the last thing you want to do is

waste time on an Internet marketing strategy

that is ineffective. One of the hottest new

Internet marketing terms is search engine

result page or S.E.R.P. People are beginning

to realize that the most important factor in

Internet marketing in the all-important search

page result.

Someone is looking for something, they enter a

few words into a search engine and pages that

match the search words appear. Any intelligent

Internet marketing aficionado is focused on

where their website shows up on that list. The

more effective the company’s Internet

marketing strategy the higher up the list they

will appear. Internet marketing studies have

shown that the first page of results of an

Internet search engine is the Promised Land

for an effective Internet marketing scheme.

The first month your Internet marketing

strategy places your business on the first

page of search results can bring you an

increase in traffic to your site of more than

100 percent. The second month of effective

Internet marketing will increase it even more,

sometimes as much as 200 percent. There isn’t

a business out there that doesn’t wish for

those kinds of results from their Internet

marketing plan.

So what kind of Internet marketing plan will

get you onto that coveted search results first

page? The first Internet marketing tool you

will need is keywords. Keywords, the words

prospective clients enter into search engines

to find what they’re looking for are Internet

marketing gems. Creating keyword-rich content

on your website will greatly increase your

ranking on the search engine. Be smart about

it. Search engines can distinguish an Internet

marketing keyword rich approach from someone

who is just being stupid. But an Internet

marketing strategy that fills your site with

the right keywords will make your ranking rise.

Another great Internet marketing tool for

raising search engine ranking is the press

release. There are a great number of companies

now offering optimized press releases to bring

more awareness to your site. An effective

Internet marketing strategy will utilize this.

Choose wisely, but do not ignore this Internet

marketing asset. Check with anyone who is

having success with their Internet marketing

and you are sure to find that they use an

optimized press release service. A well-

crafted article that raises the aware ness of

your Internet marketing keywords will always

be a profitable Internet marketing tool, as

long as you find a service that gets good

exposure for their articles. Again, do your

homework.

Finally, remember that as much as 80% of all

internet traffic goes no further than the

first page of results for their internet

search. Use this to your Internet marketing

advantage. Use every Internet marketing tool

at your disposal to get yourself onto that

page and you will see Internet marketing

success. Everyone says they have an Internet

marketing strategy. Be smart about your

Internet marketing strategy and you will leave

most of them in the dust.

About the author:

To find the best home based business ideas and opportunities so you can work at home visit: [http://www.MakeItBigForLife.com]

Sports cars are available for sale through dealers and auctions, and on the Internet. Auctions often advertise bargain prices, which they call wholesale rates. Many such prices are bait to attract unsuspecting customers, who end up paying extras like taxes, money for the fuel already in the car, valet charges and more. Therefore, it is better to exercise a little caution before going in for such ‘deals.’ You can help yourself by checking out the auction company’s credibility, making inquiries about the car’s price at other places, examining the car for defects, finalizing a budget for yourself, and familiarizing yourself with the auction procedure by attending other auctions.

If you choose to buy from a dealer you must conduct some research prior to visiting the showroom. Find out about the car, other dealers who may be offering a better price, and other factors. Test-drive the car before you decide to buy it. Do not discuss your finances with the dealer; it would suffice to inform him how much you are willing to pay. Take advantage of finance schemes and make sure to get details of extras that come with the car, such as free gifts or warranties. Once you reach the price that you are comfortable with, don’t bargain further in the hope of a better offer.

Many sports cars are bought and sold on the Internet these days. Websites feature attractive specs, pictures and reviews of sports cars to attract customers. Shortlist advertisements give complete details about the car, mode of payment, conditions of sale and other information. Avoid advertisements that are vague on details. Examine the seller’s record on the site; if possible, speak to one of his previous customers. Try to arrange for a test drive and a viewing of the car before you pay for it.

These are just a few important pointers that will help you make a good purchase, so that you can really enjoy your newly purchased sports car.

Sports Cars provides detailed information on Sports Cars, Exotic Sports Cars, Classic Sports Cars, Sports Cars for Sale and more. Sports Cars is affiliated with SUV Vans.

This article shows you, as a vehicle owner, how to prepare yourself for a breakdown even

before they occur. And to help you fix problems quickly if you are into Do It Yourself auto repairs.

Breakdown Can Be Really Nasty:

Though we don’t pray for breakdowns, they do occur, and at the time we least expected.

The frustration, time wastage, and other losses incurred from breakdowns can be reduced to minimum

level, if adequate preparation are made for it.

The following steps will guide all vehicle owners who are into do it yourself auto

repairs, and help them to quickly tackle problems that surface in time of breakdown.

1. Prepare Yourself Psychologically:

One of the first thing you will experience
during a breakdown, especially if you are not familiar with car repair and maintenance is panic, you
don’t just know what next to do.

Just have it at the back of your mind that a vehicle can breakdown at any time, and even
without giving any sign, prepare your mind for this and use other points I will also show you to
deal with the situation.

2. Study Your Auto Repair Manual:

Get yourself a well detailed and well illustrated repair manual, and familiarize yourself with your car parts, systems and their functions. These are the
basics of Do It Yourself auto repair jobs.

Study the areas dealing with troubleshooting car engines very well, so that you can easily discern what happened when your car broke down, and you know where to go to solve the problem.

3. Become A Do It Yourself Auto Repair Mechanic:

This will actually help you to
tackle the problem, not only to identify it. Start trying your hands on some little repair and maintenance work now.

Join an auto repair site for guide and instruction (especially those crucial to your vehicle) so as not
to fail. You will be glad you did when next you have a breakdown.

4. Always Get Your Tools Ready:

Get a small toolbox, with necessary repair and
maintenance tools (you can get the details from your repair manual), and go anywhere with them always. You can’t repair anything without the right tools, and with them Do It Yourself auto repair becomes easy.

5. Always Keep Some Money With You:

It requires that you need to buy auto parts and accessories in the cause of a breakdown. Money can actually bail you out, so always keep them handy.

6. Get Some Auto Parts Ready:

You can buy and keep some necessary, highly-susceptible-to-breakdown auto parts and accessories in your car, like fan belt, plugs, etc, and you can just pick them and use, to replace faulty ones instead of wasting time buying another one.

7. Use The Service Of Auto Centres:

Register with a good auto centre and keep
their phone number handy. This is good if the problem is such that you cannot solve it, you can quickly call them to tow the car for repairs. Because you have registered, you can get prompt and cheap services from them.

Tope Olawumi is a seasoned auto-infopreneur, for more info on how on how to prepare yourself for a breakdown and Do it yourself auto repair visit http://www.all-about-auto-part.com/Do-It-Yourself-Auto-Repair.html You can also get the latest in cheap car part blog from http://www.all-about-auto-part.com/Auto-part-blog.html

Tennis is also known as lawn tennis. It is a popular international racquet-and- ball sport that is played for recreational and competitive purpose. This can be played indoor as well as outdoor and consists of two players or a team of couple players that hit a rubber ball with the help of their racquets. There is net in between that divides the teams from the middle of the court. The court plays a significant role in this game.

Initially tennis was the game for aristocrats and was known as Court Tennis in USA, Royal Tennis in Australia, Jeu de Paume in France and Real Tennis in Great Britain. There are certain fundamental rules of this game but just like any other sport you need some basic tennis equipments to play this game effectively. Given below is the list:

Racquet: It is one of the most important tennis equipment to play this game. Today market is filled with variety of racquets for professionals as well beginners. There are major brands that specialize in manufacturing equipments.

They have everything that you need to improve the game of tennis. It is game that requires lot of stamina therefore the modern tennis racquet for an adult would be of dimensions 27″ to 27.5″. While choosing a racquet the following things have to be kept in mind like the head size, grip size, flex, length, sting patterns, weight and balance.

Tennis bag: This is important because you need a storage place where you can carry tennis equipments to play the game. Apart from being durable it should be portable also so that you can carry it everywhere without any hassles. Apart from physical stores there are online stores that sell tennis accessories. With the click of mouse you can select the product of your choice or order online.

Tennis shoes: These should not only be comfortable but court specific since the compatibility and conformity differs from pair to another. Like any other apparel make sure that your feet are protected. The toe area should have better protection than any other part of your foot as most of the tennis players use their toes for foreground grand strokes.

Nowadays tennis shoes come with special shock absorbers as well moisture absorbing mechanisms. Since this game requires a lot of sudden movement so make a wise decision of buying good shoes that will support and protect your feet.

Tennis clothing: This has undergone a complete metamorphosis than what it as several years back. Today tennis players have designer tennis apparels to suit their style and personality.

Most of the tennis shop stock up everything from boys’ tennis apparel, girls’ tennis apparel, neck tie coolers, ladies tennis apparel, men tennis apparel, stocks, caps, head gear to sweat bands.

Tennis ball machine: This is used by professionals as practice equipment. It helps players to handle all sorts of shots and practice footwork that their opponent might use. They come in different shapes and are great help.

Tennis Ball: This comes in different colors which can be green, yellow, white that is approved by USTA (United States Tennis Association). This has fixed size, deformation and weight.

All these are essential to play a game tennis.

Before purchasing essential tennis equipment it is always advisable to carry out a thorough research. This can also be done over the Internet that guides you through various online stores. These offer top-of-line tennis racquets, tennis shoes, tennis clothing and others necessities required for the game.

Creative sensational from different parts of the world taking style, beauty and definition of fashion to its edge, promotional linchpin of a multibillion-dollar industry, I am talking about nothing else but Fashion Weeks. Fashion weeks are hallmarks of fashion industry to rollout the new season feel in fashion. They generally last up to a week allowing fashion designers, artists and fashion houses to display their latest collection. It hallmarks next seasons in things, that’s why it is very important for buyers, media, celebrities and entertainment industry who take that fashion among the general public.

The most famous fashion weeks are held at Fashion Mecca Paris, Milan, London and New York. Since the new millennium fashion weeks are held in different parts of the world to put the local fashion on the world map and making a packed fashion calendar throughout the year. A refreshing sense of national identity and pride has emerged from the achievements of fashion sector – something that was otherwise traditionally been restricted to feats of sporting prowess, adding that its benefits go well beyond the fashion world (Emling 2006).

Fashion weeks are held several months in advance giving chance to designers, media and buyers to preview the trend for the next season. Fashion weeks are bi-annual events; the fashion weeks conducted between January and March are called “fall fashion weeks” whereas the one conducted in September through November are called “Spring Fashion Weeks”. Some fashion weeks can be genre-specific, such as a Miami Fashion Week (Swimwear), Prêt-a-Porter (ready-to-wear) Fashion Week, Couture (one-of-a-kind designer original) Fashion Week, Palm Springs Fashion Week (Resort Collections) and Bridal Fashion Week.

History

Omission of fashion week history would be curious at this point of time. Let me throw some light on that. Edna Woodman Chase–former editor of Vogue organized “Fashion Fete,” in 1914 to benefit the war-relief effort which is often apocryphally called the first fashion show ever. By the 1920s, the fashion show had gone mainstream. Early shows were often more theatrical than those of today.

More

Fibre2Fashion.com – Leading B2B Portal and Marketplace of Global Textile, Apparel Fashion & Retail Industry Provides Fashion Jobs, Fashion Shows [http://www.fibre2fashion.com/tradefairs/fashion-show-fair.asp], Fashion Articles, News, Software Solutions, Market Watch, Used Machinery and much more

Starting out in internet marketing is almost always overwhelming

to e-business newcomers, even if they are seasoned business

professionals or marketing experts. Internet marketing is truly

original and quite different from traditional marketing. The

complexity is compounded for those who do not have vast

experience operating or marketing a business. Whatever the

circumstances, many new internet entrepreneurs ponder the idea of

hiring an internet marketing expert to get their internet-based

business off the ground.

There are different types of internet marketing experts who

provide various levels of support and services. Hiring or

contracting to a full-service internet marketing expert can be

quite expensive, but using limited services of an internet

marketing expert can be both cost-effective and advantageous for

a new internet business. Another option to hiring an internet

marketing expert is to pursue training and educational

opportunities in internet marketing that will prepare you to

become an internet marketing expert yourself.

Some services offered internet marketing expert firms include:

1. Preparation of marketing plans

2. Internet marketing

consulting services

3. Management of specific internet marketing

campaigns

4. Full-service planning and management of the internet

marketing program

Having an internet marketing expert craft a marketing plan that

is specific to your business is a good way to gain an

introduction to internet marketing and to realize your internet

marketing potential. A marketing plan prepared by an internet

marketing expert should contain an analysis of your business and

your industry as well as identifying and evaluating your

competition and recommending a niche market for you to target.

The internet marketing expert should also outline internet

marketing strategies for you to use to reach your target market

and to drive targeted traffic to your website. Specifics of your

planned internet marketing campaign should be included in the

marketing plan along with milestones and an internet marketing

budget. Using an internet marketing expert in this capacity will

provide you with a clear internet marketing plan that will serve

as a guide for your internet marketing program.

Internet consulting services provided by an internet marketing

expert can be provided one-on-one, through classes or through

coaching. Generally, such consulting services accomplish the same

thing as a marketing plan prepared by an internet marketing

expert, but they are less formal and more intended to condition

you to prepare and administer your own marketing plan and

program. Working with an internet marketing expert on a

consulting basis is a great way to learn about internet marketing

and to prepare yourself to manage your own internet marketing

program.

Sometimes you may find it beneficial to hire or contract an

internet marketing expert to manage a specific area of your

internet marketing campaign that is time consuming. Search engine

optimization and pay-per-click management are examples of these

specific activities that may benefit from the use of an internet

marketing expert. Both require ongoing monitoring and adjustments

to be continually effective and cost-efficient. Linking campaigns

are also ongoing, time consuming tasks that you may want to

consider outsourcing to an internet marketing expert.

A full-service internet marketing expert generally provides a

wide-array of internet marketing services. Among them are the

marketing planning tasks of reviewing the industry, identifying

the competition, analyzing the market, pinpointing a target

market, developing a unique selling proposition, identifying

marketing methods, and planning the marketing budget. Once the

marketing plan is in place and approved by you, the full-service

internet marketing expert actually launches and manages your

internet marketing campaign.

Considering all of the levels of service that an internet

marketing expert can provide will help you to decide whether or

not to hire an internet marketing expert. The main advantages of

using the services of an internet marketing expert are access to

expertise and freeing up your time. The disadvantage, of course,

is the cost associated with the use of an internet marketing

expert. In making that crucial decision for your unique business,

a cost-benefit analysis can provide guidance to ensure that you

make the best decision for your business.

Copyright Christopher J. Enders. Are you at the end of your rope, fed up and confused by all the scrambled internet marketing advice you’re getting? Whether you are new to internet marketing, or a website owner who wants to make more money from your website, learn the proven strategies that will sky-rocket your internet business at http://BiznessTips.com

The term “a dog’s life” used to describe a pretty rustic existence for the family pet… Fido slept on the back porch, had an occasional bath in the back yard kiddy pool and for a treat, chewed on a rawhide bone.

Today however, a dog’s life often means being toted around in at $400 dog carrier, sleeping in a $1000 dog house, and wearing a collar embedded with Swarovski crystals. Yes times have changed and these days dogs, cats, birds, and the like are living the high life. In 2007, Americans spent a record $41 billion dollars on their beloved pets! All across the globe, pet owners are becoming increasingly demanding when it comes to pet products and not settling for inexpensive, substandard products. These days, only the best in pet products will do and this opens up tremendous opportunity for anyone who is interested in selling in the pet products niche.

Target Market:

Fueling this growing trend in the pet product industry are empty nesters who lavish attention and money on their pets, baby boomers with disposable income and young adults who are waiting until later to have children and instead are putting their time and energy into Fido and Fluffy.

Even families of more modest means are spending money on a menagerie of pets. Families see their pets as a member of the family and are willing to spend big money on them. Additionally, the influence of popular television shows like Animal Planet, have made the family pet more revered than ever.

Product Trends:

These 5 distinct trends drive the market for pet products sales:

1. Luxury pet products. The luxury pet products industry has seen the most growth in recent years and continues to lead the pack when it comes to the sale of pet merchandise. Consumers want the best for their pets and they are willing to shell out big bucks to get the products they want. People who buy luxury pet products are generally more affluent. They also tend to buy a complete ensemble of pet accessories. The pet sweater must match the pet carrier and the very often, that must match what the owner is wearing as well. But it isn’t only clothing items that are on every pet owners shopping list – There are now $430 indoor potties, $30-an-ounce perfume, climate controlled pet carriers, jeweled pet collars (with real jewels), $225 trench coats, designer pet beds, dog shoes, Halloween costumes, Zen dining tables, dog spas, even doggie nail polish!

2. Traveling pets. Have pets will travel is the mantra of many pet owners. To do this in comfort and style requires the right kind of products and accessories. Climate controlled pet carriers; pet booster seats and pet strollers enable that traveling pet to ride in style.

3. Eco-friendly pets. Eco-friendly and organic products have been a huge influence on pet products sales in the past couple years. This trend is continuing, in fact the largest growth sector in several pet product categories has been that of eco-friendly and organic products. If you sell pet products you must give your buyers some eco-friendly versions of popular pet products.

4. Exotic pets. While dogs and cats are certainly the most popular pets, we’re also seeing a trend towards ownership of more exotic pets. Today there is a demand for products for birds, reptiles, fish, ferrets, mice, rats, hamsters, gerbils, pot belly pigs, rabbits, chinchillas, aquatic turtles and more.

5. Fashion pets. Today’s pets are so well dressed with coordinating accessories that they could easily grace the cover of Pet Vogue magazine. Pet owner fashionistas are snapping up designer style pet products at a frenzied pace. Pink-a-holic pet? There’s a slew of hot pink fashion pet products out there. More into the preppy look? Outfit your pet and his products so he looks straight out of the Ivy League. Is Bowser a rock- and-roll dog? He’ll look and act the part with today’s pet fashion products. Pets and fashion have merged in a big way!

Product Categories:

There are literally hundreds of categories of pet products. The following 5 umbrella categories offer a lot of opportunity to drill down and look for sub-niches and micro-niches.

1. Pet Transportation. Pets are on the go! And pet strollers, pet carriers and pet booster seats, all help your pet get there safely, soundly and in style. A recent pet lover’s blog featured 16 reasons your pet needs a pet stroller! Pet ramps and stairs help older pets remain comfortable in the event of health issues. Liners and barriers for automobiles help to keep your car clean and fresh (and your pet safe) while he rides around the town.

2. Pet Housing and Home Decor. A pet’s home is his castle and one of the best selling pet product categories is that of pet houses, beds, kitty condos, pet couches, chairs, pillows and the like! Blankets, bowls and feeders all round out the home décor needs of a happy and well-nested pet.

3. Pet Clothing and Accessories. The possibilities are endless in the pet accessory market! Dog toys, grooming accessories, pet shoes, pet eye ware, pet safety products, grooming products, art work, pet exercisers, pet treadmills, pet games, and pet jewelry are just a small sampling of the products that are being snapped up by today’s pet owner.

4. Pet Health. Pet owners are very concerned about their pet’s health and the sale of pet health products are on the rise. From pet treadmills to grooming products, lotions and potions, to shampoos and nutritional supplements, people are paying as much attention to their pet’s health as they are their own.

5. Pet Products for humans. A consistent trait of pet owners is that they not only like to purchase products for their pets, they also like to purchase products for themselves that represent their pets. Consider the 38 year old Chicago executive who owns two Golden Retrievers. Her home is filled with pieces of artwork, figurines, t-shirts, books and jewelry all representing the Golden Retriever breed. Pet lovers who can’t own pets due to allergies or logistical reasons but still want to feel connected with a pet are also buying these types of pet products in droves.

Founder and CEO of What Do Sell®, Lisa Suttora is a noted eBay authority. An internationally known product sourcing and trending expert, Lisa has coached thousands of eBay entrepreneurs in building a successful eBay business. Lisa is the co-author of the best-selling product sourcing book “What to Sell on eBay and Where to Get It” from McGraw-Hill publishers and the Product Trending Editor for the Product Sourcing Radio Show. WhatDoISell.com, the oldest online private membership community for eBay Sellers has been serving eBay sellers since 2004. An eBay Certified Provider and a member of the Better Business Bureau, whatdoisell.com is your all-in-one solution for starting or expanding your eBay business. http://www.whatdoisell.com To receive your free Product Trends 2008 report, please go to [http://www.producttrends2008.com]

John Deere tractors are by far the most popular and widely recognized tractor brand in the United States. The John Deere 8345RT Track Tractor is the latest in the John Deere line of agricultural tractors. With models that range all the way up to 345 horsepower they are certainly not lacking in the power and force department. Comfort is also something that John Deere takes seriously as well. They have introduced an air cushion suspension to make the ride more comfortable.

New Holland tractors have been around since 1895 and are quite popular worldwide. Out of all of the major tractor producers they have the most experience of time under their belts. New Holland also manufactures combines which are utilized in the farming trade. Therefore, New Holland has a vast knowledge of the farming industry which makes them quite popular. The newest New Holland tractor for sale is the Workmaster. The Workmaster was a popular tractor many years ago which has been revamped to suit the modern needs of today’s farmers. It is simple and comfortable yet durable and reliable. With fifty-five horsepower on some models of the Workmaster clearly power will not be an issue. In addition to the Workmaster, New Holland has just produced a hydrogen powered tractor, the NH2, which does not emit pollutants into the atmosphere. The NH2 tractor is without a doubt the most environmentally friendly tractor on the market today.

In 1985, Ford purchased the New Holland company although each maintained to operate under their own respective brand names until the company was bought out by Fiat in 1991. Although Fiat stopped using the Ford brand name on tractors in 2000, Ford still remains one of the most popular tractor producers of all time. Currently, perhaps the most widely utilized Ford tractor of all time is the model N series. This tractor was quite popular and affordable during its day. While these tractors are now considered to be antiques they are still quite popular.

Massey Ferguson tractors appear to be ahead of the game as far as comfort and size are concerned. Recently, Massey Ferguson tractors have produced the MF1600 Series tractor which provides the strength of an all steel frame and well as the comforts of a luxury vehicle. In addition to this, these tractors appear to be the top of the line in durability and maneuverability. With four wheel drive and up to sixty horsepower on some models, the MF1600 Series tractors seem to be a long awaited force within the farming industry.

Fendt tractors are a relative newcomer to the farming industry. However, they are growing at an incredible rate. They have recently produced the Vario series of tractors.

These tractors alone appear to be far more economical than many other tractor brands. On every Vario tractor that Fendt has recently produced there is a fuel consumption monitor which allows the driver to keep an eye on how much fuel they are using. With tractors that range all the way up to 360 horsepower they are powerful as well.

Overall, there are many new and exciting tractors on the market today. Each of the aforementioned tractors have unique and special qualities which set them apart from one another. There are many factors to consider when purchasing a new tractor so take the time to weigh out what is important before making this decision.

Robert Tate – Region Sales Manager of Mascus UK. Mascus is an electronic marketplace for used trucks, trailers and tractors. Mascus makes trading in John Deere tractors for sale more efficiently by collecting all information about supply and demand in one place. All dealers, producers and end users are welcome to offer their used machines and trucks for sale via the marketplace.

Contacts:
Robert Tate
Regional Sales Manager – UK
Mob:+ 44 (0) 7970 230055
E mail: robert.tate@mascus.com

“Can I wash my own dog? It can’t be that hard can it?” These are the words that I hear everyday as I go about my business working at the Pooch Parlor in Northern Idaho. Each time I walk a customer through this process, I find myself wondering why in the world something so simple is so doggone hard to explain. Washing your own dog may seem simple, but – only if you think and speak ‘dog’ – the language of your own dog.

I run a shop for full service and self-service dog grooming and bathing, and I LOVE it! There are dogs, and owners, of every size, every breed, and every temperament that come in to use the self-service doggie wash. Most owners are excited, some are scared, and some are cocky, but no matter who they are, or what they do for a living, there is nothing quite as intimidating for them as washing their own dog in public! The thought of doing this can give even the most confident person, performance anxiety, and for good reason! It is a true test of trust and tolerance and friendship for the person and dog companion. And, on a very basic level, it is an honest mirror for the owner, and how he or she deals with life, and with conflict. The likelihood of a successful experience for both is completely dependent upon the psychological relationship that exists between them, and, to a large extent, the ability of both to comprehend the body language of the other. You may be surprised to know that I have found that dogs are supremely better at reading their humans than their humans are of reading them. It is this relationship between human and canine, that shows itself without modesty during bathtime, and, keeps me coming to work day after day with a smile on my face.

My clients have been giving their dogs baths in my shops for 10+ years now, and, each year is more entertaining than the last when it comes to watching regular people washing their own regular dogs. The average person that comes through our doors is highly successful, which usually means – intelligent – and, because like attracts like, so is their dog. And, so why oh why, they ask me, should this simple task of cleaning their dog be so difficult? I ask them time and again, “Well, how well do you speak dog?” Invariably, their reply is a blank stare. So, this is the time to ask yourself, “How well do YOU speak dog?”

There is a lot to say about the theories of why dogs and humans behave the way they do, but I’m going to get back to the practical things to look for while bathing your own dog. The bottom line to remember is that your dog’s energy and personality traits are a mirror to your own. Take this into consideration when attempting to get him into the tub and have him be happy about it.

1. Deciding when to bathe your dog. Timing and Personality traits: Timing is important. Look at your own needs regarding timing to know how your dog will react. Are you the kind of person that is up for anything anytime? Or do you need to accomplish your day in a scheduled, systematic way? How do you do with new experiences? Do you find them refreshing and fun, or do you feel fearful until comfortable with a new activity? Your dog is going to deal with the bathtime experience in the same way you deal with life experiences. Remember that your dog is going to reflect your own personality traits – not necessarily the traits you show the world, but the traits that are truly inside you.

a. Fun-loving, extroverted, and social humans. If you enjoy regular physical activity, then so will your dog. For this type of person and dog, I suggest you take your dog out for a bout of exercise before the bath. In the city where I work, we are fortunate to have a designated beach on the lake just for dogs and their humans – dogbeach. There is a long path to run or walk on, and there is a large beach area to swim and play in. This is the perfect scenario for pre-bath timing. The dog can choose to get muddy, run, socialize, or just enjoy being outside. In any case, the dog is able to spend big reserves of energy outside in a fun way, just like letting human children play before naptime. If you love exercise, do something like this with your dog before taking him into your own tub or a professional facility for a dog bath. A common fault of the social dog and owner: Just because you are friendly, out-going person does not mean everyone wants to accept your friendly, and out-going gestures. It’s hard to fathom, I know, but it is true. If you have a very social dog (if you are a social person), it is easy to forget that many dogs (like their owners) are not social and do not appreciate the social requirements (like butt-sniffing) of others. Please remember to respect their space when in public or otherwise. Keep your dog restrained and under control, even if your dog has the friendliest intentions.

b. Non-social, active, or inactive humans. If your personality is not conducive to social interaction, then I still suggest that you walk your dog or do something that is comfortable within your life that involves light exercise before bathing your dog. Taking a walk with your dog does wonders to alleviate excess tension or stress for both human and dog. By getting rid of stressful energies during a walk, it does not present itself during bathtime. Getting exercise is especially important for those humans,( I mean dogs), that are highly nervous. I recommend giving your dog Valerian root (liquid form) or Rescue Remedy (liquid or spray) orally 30 minutes before the bath. Both of these products are natural remedies to calming down jittery nerves- and it works great for humans too. If timing is important in your life, take your dog to a self-service bathing facility when the least amount of people are there, usually early or late in the day. A common fault of the non-social dog and owner: they communicate poorly within their own species and with other species. Many people that tend towards isolation, often do this because they never figured out how to communicate effectively in human society. Their dogs typically have the same problem. I have seen it happen many times that owners of aggressive dogs unwittingly encourage their dog’s unwanted behavior, when they think they are doing the opposite. They do this by projecting their worrying thoughts about the ‘what-ifs’ of a social situation. Dogs of this type of owner act out their dog interpretations of their human owners signals. The dogs often pick up the ‘what-if’ fears of the human as the request of their human, actually creating the ‘what-if’ behavior to occur. Without human intervention and boundary setting by the owner (requiring advanced communication skills), it is quite common for this type of dog to exhibit increasingly aggressive behavior. Most owners are dismayed by their dog’s aggressive behavior, but they simply lack the skills required to communicate what behavior they will and won’t allow from their dog. I recommend that if you have a dog that is displaying increasingly aggressive behaviors to consult a professional dog behaviorist or trainer. Just a few simple tricks will convey an accurate message to a dog that is most likely misunderstanding your expectations.

Language barriers for humans and dogs. Its no surprise that miscommunication between owner and dog happens often. If you are a human that is finding you don’t understand why your dog does what he does, remember, you are learning a whole different language and culture. Give yourself time and give your dog time to understand each other. Just don’t expect your dog to act like a human, especially during conflict. It takes time and practice for anyone to learn a new human language. It’s no different learning dog language. We all know how to interpret a human smile in society. When a dog pulls his lips back over his teeth, it typically doesn’t mean he’s happy! Would a human dream of greeting a new acquaintance by sniffing their butt? Right! But, in doggie language, that’s the equivalent of shaking hands. A dog that shakes his head to get the slobber off of his mouth is no different than a person smoothing his slacks or dusting off his shirt to look more polite. The differences are huge, so give yourself and your dog a break if you have hit a communication block wall.

2. Deciding where to bathe your dog: There are not a lot of choices when it comes to bathing your dog. A. You can use your own bathtub at home which requires no human socializing – hard on your back, it’s very messy with extended after cleaning, and potentially traumatizing to human and dog. B. Bring your dog to a self-service doggie wash shop – easier on your back, requires some basic social skills by owner and dog, can be noisy and hairy, requires no after cleaning, and it does cost more than just the shampoo. C. Tie the dog to a fence and wash him with a hose in the yard (hopefully on a hot, sunny day) – not easy on the back, hard on the dog with cold water, potentially traumatizing for nervous dogs, but does not require human or dog socialiaing. D. Wash the dog in your nearest lake -which is very popular in my neck of the woods – hard on the back, requires advanced human and dog social skills, is potentially harmful to the environment, and how clean can you really get a dog in lakewater?

Regardless of where you wash your dog, take into account your own physical limitations, and your dog’s physical limitations. Is it worth wrecking your bathroom and hurting your back to wash your dog at home? For the clients I see, the answer is a definite, no! Emotional requirements are often a factor for dogs. For instance, (in general) Labrador retrievers have no issue being bathed in a lake (even though they don’t get clean), but they often resent being restrained in a tub with a sprayer hose pointed in their direction. For a farm dog that has never been away from home, tying them to the fence is a better solution than trucking them to the city and asking them to have manners in a grooming shop, or in a populated lake. At least next to the fence, even with cold water, they are comfortable with where they are and what is expected of them.

My vote is, of course to find a self-service doggie wash facility. The equipment is professional and easy to use, the water is warm (most of the time) and typically the dogs get treats when they walk out the door, which makes them happy campers. So, for those that want to know about washing your dog at a laundradog facility, here you go:

2. Getting your dog in the tub and getting him to stay there! At this grooming shop, the average dog that comes in for self-service is around 100lbs. All the dogs are washed at waist level where they stand on a grate in the tub. Getting them in the tub can be a trick. It’s kind of like asking a human to put ice skates on, and stand on the ice and not worry about how to do it. The easiest way for dog and human is to not give the dog time to decide whether or not he wants to. (Not the easiest task for shy or overprotective owners). The owner is given a large choker chain or cloth noose which goes around the dogs neck.

Leading: We have the owner quickly lead/pull the dog up the stairs with another person on the other end of the dog to give a quick boost on the butt end. The dog is on the grate, and in the tub before he has decided to be worried about it. Once the dog is in the tub, the owner hooks them in (not something you can do in your tub at home) to a variety of metal hooks inside the tub.

Choking: The dogs that are new to having a bath will sometimes turn in the tub and pull on the choker chain. We prefer the choker chain to a regular noose because the dog quickly learns with a choker that he is in control of whether or not he feels the choking sensation. The second the dog realizes he controls his own choking, AND realizes his owner is going to allow him to learn this (this is very difficult for the overprotective and/or mother types of owners-most all of us!), the pulling behavior stops. With a regular cloth noose, or one that does not self-regulate, the dogs will pull and pull and often never learn that they have the control over their own pulling more than any other behavior during the bath. Owners feel like they are directly causing their dog injury and should rescue them immediately when they hear them coughing and sometimes gagging. It is natural to feel concern over your dog choking, but it helps to think of the dog’s pulling and coughing similar to putting a toddler into his crib for a midday nap.

Many human toddlers HATE taking a nap and will cry hard enough to cough and gag. If parents rescue them from their cribs when this happens, they are reinforcing this coughing behavior for their child. Parents that monitor the crying, and coughing from a safe distance where the toddler cannot see them, soon find that their babies submit quietly to naptime without expecting to be rescued each time he utters a sound. Naps and baths may not be pleasant to begin with, but they are both essential habits of life. Dogs have the same learning behaviors regarding rescue. Owners that react with excessive concern over the pulling (as the dog is expecting), or crying and screaming tantrums, find they are only encouraging more pulling and tantrums from their dog. This point is so crucial that it is worth repeating. The more upset and worried the owner gets over the dogs behavior, the more they get of that dog behavior. If the owner is calm and without fear – and projects this to their dog, it is not long before the dog understands that pulling on the chain is only hurting himself, and that tantrums are a waste of their energy. When the owner believes everything is fine despite pulling and tantrums, the dog does too, and he stops the undesirable behavior accepts that today is bath day!

So many nurturing owners find this part difficult, but try to remember, when you expect your dog to learn how to control his own anxiety, he will learn, but it requires that you LET him learn. The best ways to learn to control ones own anxiety is to actually go through the experience of having the anxiety and dealing with it. If you are the type of owner that cannot allow your dog to experience this emotion without taking over and stopping the experience, your dog will learn to go into an anxious state more and more easily because of the reaction that he can expect from his owner. This becomes upsetting for both dog and owner and as you can see becomes an escalating cycle. If you allow your dog to go through this experience of the bath, anxiety and all, you will see that they will calm down and before you know it, you have a dog that allows you to bathe him! And having clean dog is essential to most dog owners. When your dog does calm down, i.e. quits pulling on the noose and allows the bath experience, that is the right time to express heightened emotion of happiness through praise and treats. If you take this time to praise your dog, it won’t be long before your dog asks to be washed with a happy, wanting-to-please attidude.

However, as with any rule, there are a few exceptions: old, very young, asthmatic, and dogs with neck or throat problems should be closely watched if they exhibit excessive pulling on the choker chain.

Ignore or not to Ignore: Most of the time, I recommend to owners to simply and quietly ignore their dogs protesting to get the behavior to stop (and it does), with the only exception being a small puppy (like a yorkie) or an old and fragile dog. Both the young and the old dogs that are not used to baths can injure their tracheas or create a medical problem (like asthma) if their nervous behaviors are allowed to escalate. It is in this circumstance that I tell the owners to use a harness to hook the dogs in the tub or in the case of a small and wild puppy, to use a sink or bucket in which they can immerse the dog in warm, soapy water. Puppies are wired to swim and that’s what they do if they find their bodies in water. Swimming is easier to work with than a freaking out jumping bean. If you do choose to ignore your dog’s protesting to the bath, REMEMBER to give lots of praise when the dog show’s signs of acceptance and/or begins to calm down.

Drying Your Dog: Drying a dog depends on the type of hair, type of temperament and grooming experience the dog has. If you have a shorthaired dog, towel drying is generally adequate. In the grooming shop, we use high-power dryers that blow the water out of thick or double-coated dogs like shepards, collies, and huskies – and in this case – standard poodles.

Put cotton in the dog’s ears before you begin as the dryer is loud. Make sure there is a minimum of play in the noose or chain that connects the dog to the tub, as the more room the dog has to throw a tantrum, the more room he’ll use. Start the dryer on the back end of the dog and aim the dryer side to side moving towards the head until the water is not dripping off the dog any longer. Most private owners go home with their dogs still dripping because of the tantrum factor. This is where the above information comes into play. The majority of dogs are nervous at first, but they quickly learn that the air is only loud, not painful. If the owner stays calm, the dog will quickly find this state during the drying process.

There are a few more minor steps that do occur in the grooming shop, such as brushing, nail trimming, anal expression, ear plucking and cleaning, teeth brushing and scaling and more. You can check out more ‘how to’ information on these specific techniques at www.thepoochparlor.net. Regardless of who you are or what you do for a living, the chances of your dog having a pleasant experience during the bath is highly dependent upon the ability of the dog’s owner to understand his or her own needs regarding life and society. Consider all the factors, energy reserves of your dog – spend them before the space wherever you go will increase your odds for success. Consider how much you actually do know about dog language. Above all else, remember that you, the owner, are in charge, and that if your dog is temporarily distressed with a new situation, you have to stay calm long enough to allow your dog to understand and accept the experience. It’s a curious notion that a human would have to delve into the basics of his or her own psychological needs to give their dog a great bath experience, but if you do that, you and your canine friend will have many years of happy and successful bathing experiences.

Author DuAnn Lustig-Chambers has been grooming since 1997 and owns Pooch Parlor Pet Groomer Training Academy in Sandpoint, Idaho.

Author: DuAnn Lustig-Chambers
Owner/Instructor/Dog Behaviorist Pooch Parlor Groomer Training Academy
210 Triangle Dr. Ste. D
Ponderay, ID 83852